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The Wythenshawe and Sale East constituency lies to the south of the City of
Manchester and crosses over two local authority areas.
The north western part of the seat, including Sale town centre, is in
the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford and includes the three Council wards of
Priory, Sale Moor and Brooklands.
The rest of the seat comes under the authority of
Manchester City Council, with five Council wards Baguley, Brooklands,
Northenden, Sharston and Woodhouse Park, covering the whole of Wythenshawe
itself.
Although Wythenshawe is still frequently referred to as “one of the largest
council housing estates in Europe”,
a significant proportion of the estate is privately owned housing with the rest
run by local housing associations and trusts – the main housing organisations in
Wythenshawe are Parkway
Green and Willow
Park housing trusts, with
Trafford Housing Trust on the Trafford side. Wythenshawe is also one of the
greenest parts of the Manchester area, with
Wythenshawe Hall and Park and
Sale Water Park situated locally.
The name of Wythenshawe is thought to come from the Old English for “Withy Tree
Wood” and the name originally referred only to Wythenshawe Hall and its site.
Wythenshawe Hall, once owned by the Tatton family but sold to the Manchester
Corporation in 1926, is a significant historic site given its prominence during
the English Civil War. Although a significant part of the grounds surrounding
the Hall was used to build housing for the growing population, the Hall itself
and a large area of Wythenshawe Park has been kept for the local community to
enjoy.
The areas of Northenden and Baguley are recorded in the Domesday book of 1086,
but it was not until the transfer of land to Manchester Corporation that plans
were made to develop Wythenshawe into the first municipal garden city in
Britain. As the result of ambitious pre-war and post-war house-building
programmes, the local population grew to 100,000 by 1964, when most households
had members employed in local industry and in the public services.
Manchester Airport is situated in the south of the constituency and was
granted a licence in 1929 to create the first municipal airport in Britain. It
is one of the largest airports in the UK with over 20 million passengers passing
through each year, and over 19,000 people are employed on the site. The airport
generates around £900 million for the UK economy every year and also contributes
to many local community programmes, including supporting a Community Trust Fund
– it is also the largest sponsor of arts in the North West.
Along with Willow Park Housing Trust and Manchester College, the airport sponsors
the
Manchester Enterprise Academy, the first academy in the constituency, which
will open in 2009/2010 replacing Parklands High School. It will be joined in
2010 by the new Manchester Health Academy, which will replace
Brookway High School. There are four other secondary schools in the
constituency: Sale
High School,
Sale Grammar School,
St Paul’s RC High School and
Newall Green High School – the latter two schools currently being
extensively rebuilt under the Government’s Building Schools For The Future
scheme.
Two local colleges in the area – MANCAT and City College – recently merged to
create
Manchester College, which provides Further Education opportunities locally.
The college is developing a £23 million state of the art campus in Benchill, in
the heart of Wythenshawe. The town is also home to the
Open University regional office.
Wythenshawe
Hospital is one of the leading NHS hospitals in the UK, with many specialist
units. Recent additions to the hospital site include the £14m Nightingale Centre
and Genesis Prevention Centre for breast care services and the £22m North West
Heart Centre. Current projects include an extension of the Cystic Fibrosis unit
and the development of a Macmillan Cancer Information Centre.
Near the Wythenshawe Civic Centre shopping area is
The Forum – the base for many public services. The Forum contains a large
library; the Forum Leisure gym, swimming pool and sports hall; the Forum
Learning Adult Education and Training Centre; the Forum Flavours Café; the Forum
Nursery and the Forum Health Centre; as well as a newsagents and hairdressers.
In the Woodhouse Park area of Wythenshawe there is £4 million
Lifestyle Centre providing leisure opportunities for young and old alike –
with free membership to anyone who lives in the M22 or M23 areas. Other local
facilities include the
Benchill Community Centre and
the Addy.
The Waterside
Arts Centre in Sale was opened in April 2004. The centre contains within it
The Robert Bolt Theatre; The Lauriston Gallery; The Chambers; The Corridor
Gallery; The Gallery Bar and a variety of studios and workshop spaces. The
complex forms part of Sale Waterside, which houses Trafford Council offices,
Trafford Direct, Sale Library, Youth Talk Shop, Oca Restaurant and the Waterside
Bar. The development is part of a unique PFI (Private Funded Initiative) between
Trafford Council and a private company.
The The M56 and M60 motorways run through the constituency, which also benefits
from the Metrolink
tram system. There are three Metrolink tram stations in the Sale area.
Crime has fallen across the constituency, with successful initiatives in Sale
Moor in particular receiving national attention. And the impact of local
investment and regeneration since 1997 has brought many benefits to the local
community.
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